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| Available at Amazon.com |
So apparently the reports of Saturday Night Live sucking has been greatly exaggerated. At least, we’re meant to believe so because we’ve got a “best of” set for the 2006-07 season. Or as it’s probably better known, “D**k in a Box” (mandatory given that it WON A FRICKIN’ EMMY) and a bunch of other sketches. Most sketches aren’t really worth revisiting, but you do get some entertaining sketches like the Tony Bennett Show (Alec Baldwin does a killer Bennett), United Way PSA (Peyton Manning is funny!) and Paranormal (showcasing the brilliant Hugh Laurie in his natural element of comedy). Peyton Manning and Jake Gyllenhaal get the most love here with three appearances each, while Justin Timberlake gets two – a damn shame, since JT brings the funny as a guest host. I suppose it means that we’ll get a Best of for him. Not a bad thing. Unlike the extra helpings of Maya Rudolph we get in the set. If you find her funny, then good for you. I just don’t see it.
Weekend Update is a cut ‘n’ paste collection of jokes, and I don’t think that anyone would consider this a bad thing. We’ve been expecting Amy Poehler and Seth Meyers (the new head writer) as the Update team for quite some time now, and they deliver. Of course, it may be because I’m still trying to recover from Horatio Sanz as an anchor.
About 25% of the sketches are recurring sketches – two of which are probably there because they didn’t want to subject us to the torture of Target Lady and the One Upper woman. And I don’t exactly count Trump, Boom Mic and A-Holes as gems, either. It probably won’t surprise you that I’d have much preferred some of Timberlakes recurring characters. What can I say, the kid is GREAT at this.
The extras are decent enough – a couple of cut sketches, the uncensored Dick in a Box and a blooper reel. It’s probably not what you’re gonna buy the set for though.
Skits
- Pelosi Cold Open (Kristin Wiig, Will Forte, Fred Armisen)
- Dreamgirls Monologue (Jake Gyllenhaal, Bill Hader, Forte, Amy Poehler, Maya Rudolph, Wiig)
- The Tony Bennett Show (Alec Baldwin, Andy Samberg, Tony Bennett)
- Halftime (Peyton Manning, Forte, Armisen, Forte, Hader, Samberg, Jason Sudekis, Kenan Thompson)
- Bronx Beat (Poehler, Rudolph, Gyllenhaal, Wiig)
- Digital Short: D**k In A Box (Justin Timberlake, Samberg, Rudolph, Wiig)
- Weekend Update (Poehler, Seth Meyers, Arminsen, Hader, Wiig)
- Airport Security (Dane Cook, Hader, Forte, Thompson, Armisen, Poehler, Rudolph)
- Deep House Dish (Matthew Fox, Thompson, Samberg, Rudolph, Poehler)
- Boom Mic (Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Hader, Sudekis)
- National Anthem (Sudekis, Hader, Rudolph)
- Trump Press Conference (Wiig, Darrell Hammond, Sudekis, Thompson, Poehler, Rudolph, Hader)
- A-Holes Adoption (Jeremy Piven, Poehler, Sudekis, Wiig)
- United Way PSA (Manning and a bunch of kids)
- Blizzard Man (Ludacris, Sudekis, Rudolph, Thompson, Samberg)
- Digital Short: Shooting (Hader, Samberg)
- Paranormal (Hugh Laurie, Armisen, Poehler, Hader)
- Good Night and Credits (Gyllenhaal)
The picture was pretty sharp on my laptop, and I have no complaints about it – you generally won’t with NBC shows. Audio quality was good, but (and I always mention this) most television shows aren’t what you have in mind when you think of “jaw-dropping audio”.
Dress Sketch 1 – Virginica (Manning, Forte, Thompson, Poehler, Samberg) – Basically, Keenan dressing up like a woman. If that’s your thing, you’ll like the sketch.
Dress Sketch 2 – Five O’Clock (Timberlake, Armisen, Poehler, Rudolph) – A better sketch than some of the “best” that they show in the feature. Which a) says a lot about Timberlake’s comedic skills and b) tells you how some of the other sketches sucked.
Dick In A Box (Uncensored) – Curiously, I prefer the censored version better. I guess that the bleeps work in the context of the skit.
Weekend Update blooper reel
Photo Gallery
Audio Commentary (for the main feature)
Overall, I’d give this disc a pass. There’s not too much worth watching, although I’d probably try to track down the Laurie week (which features Borat, I suppose for no other reason than both guys are from the UK). I shudder to think about how the Best of 2007/08 will be.
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Universal Studios presents Saturday Night Live: The Best of ’06/’07. Produced by Lorne Michaels. Starring Alec Baldwin, Jake Gyllenhaal, Justin Timerlake, Seth Meyers, and Amy Pohler. Not Rated. Running time: 93 minutes. Available on DVD: March 3, 2008. Available at Amazon.com
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